Under My Skin
by Mystic-Scriptures
Summary: Working as a cop is never easy, but when you throw the zombie apocalypse into the mix, the job gets a whole lot longer. I was forced to leave my city to the dead and live in isolation in the woods of my childhood. Then Dixon tried to shoot me with his crossbow and I was met with more than just the need to survive, but forced to face demons I had thought were long gone. Daryl/OC
1. Prologue

_Hey everyone, so this is a story that has been floating on the back burner for years, and in the works for a good long while. I'm hoping to release a chapter for each story a week with break starting and with my new class/ work schedule for the upcoming semester. I know there are people looking forward to updates from all of my other stories, and I'm hoping to get some of them out soon as well. Anyway, here's my TWD story and I hope you enjoy it!_

_**Disclaimer, I am not kirkman, or nicotero, or any of the other geniuses that go into this show, but none of them own Sam or this perspective. **_

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><p>Prologue<p>

Slipping through the trees, the teen slinks in the shadows where she knows she had an advantage, her guns poised at her sides to make her less conspicuous. Her steps were light as she kept special care to not avoid the crunching leaves or snapping twigs, allowing for only the faintest of rustles follow in her wake. Despite the firm and calculated movements of her targets, her movements were fluid and unpredicted, following their frantic wanderings. After a few moments, she paused behind a tree, as two figures entered the clearing before her. She observed them, waiting for her opportunity to strike. Which, as she watched, she became aware would have been at any point given how they stood at the present moment. As they looked around the area, they were both held unaggressive stances, guns in their holsters and arms loose at their sides. The taller of the two held features with some similarities to her own but not many, while the other had a more fair tone to his olive skin. Despite her advantageous stance, she still waited until their worried faces were replaced with backs facing her before she struck, jumping out of the trees and tagging them each with a splash of bright red water to the back of the head, the kool-aid already growing sticky in the hot georgian heat. As they turned she finally spoke, a victorious smirk on her face.

"Games up, boys: pay up." She teased, unperturbed by the glares they sent towards her while attempting to shake off the viscus but stubborn liquid from their hair. "You also _might_ want to get your money back from the police academy."

"Well sorry if our worries for you made us lose focus on our bet, Sam." the shorter man sighed, passing a crumpled twenty to her. "Beside, we just got in, you can't expect us to be experts already."

"As if I would get lost here, Grimes." She laughed, ignoring his logic against her jab. "I mean _seriously,_ Shane and I have gone camping here with the folks more often than I can count. Hell, you've come with us on more than a few occasions." she smiled, holding her hand out to her afore mentioned sibling. "Pay up, Shane." He did, an annoyed scowl on his face, making her rub things in further.

"Hey, don't get mad, you made yourselves easier to get by walking together. I've been tracking you guys since you left the river. It wasn't even that hard to corral you to where I wanted you to do either. I just made a few purposeful noises by throwing a rock or two, 'accidentally' stepped on a twig or two, and you were sold that I was 'lost'." She looked at them with a scornfully raised eyebrow, "Which offended me to be perfectly honest, I have the layout of this place ingrained in my memory after going on hunting trips with Daniel. As a matter of fact, a few more yards, and I would've at you guys trapped at the cliff."

Though she said this all pretty blandly, her brother started to laugh, making her and Rick look at him strangely. He shook his head, tossing a lazy arm across her shoulders and pulled her into a one armed hug against his chest. Messing with her hair, he looked to Rick, giving voice to his mirth.

"She might be a pain in my ass, but we'll make a _hell_ of a cop out of her, yet, Man." She ducked from his grip to punch him in the shoulder as he continued, "I mean, she's not bad for someone freshly graduated."

Rick laughed as he watched the two, "Shane, _we_ ain't even cops yet, and what has you so surprised anyway? She practically lives in whatever room we're studying in. And She has so many credits, she'll be joining right after we leave."

"Well, no shit, when I decided to work at the diner to pay for summer courses the past three years along with the dual enrollment from junior and senior years of high school, what did you expect?" Sam bragged, shrugging out of her brother's grasp to poke at her pseudo-brothers ribs. "Soon I'll be out of this blink of an eye town and chasing down crime in the city. I'm getting out of here, and I'm gonna do something with my degree."

"Don't even start to rub it in, Walsh." he laughed, swatting her hands away from him. "As if your folks'll let you leave them for Atlanta."

"Please, they _love me_ they'd let me be a cop in _Mars_ if it made me happy." she said with a lazy rolle of her eyes, "You're just jealous that I'll be a better cop than you, grimes, and faster ta boot."

"We'll see about that, Sammy...We'll see."

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><p>*Six Years Later*<p>

"Deputy Walsh speaking, how may I help you."

"Sam, it's Shane"

"Why are you calling me, Shane."

"..."

"Shane?"

"It...It's Rick...He...He got shot on the scene...he's in a coma Sam..."

"Shane, Rick's a fighter, you know that better than anyone else...He...he..." She sighed. "He'll get through this...he has to, right? for Carl and Lori?"

"Yea...yea...He'll fight this...Thanks...Sam..."

"..." She held the phone to her ear not sure what to say, and when she still couldn't she put the phone on the receiver.

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><p>"How is he doing?"<p>

"He's the same...Still no sign of him waking yet...but, he's stable."

"Shane, is Rick coming with the Medevac that I just got a call about?"

"Just barely...what with everything that's going on here with whatever the hell is hitting everybody...we're lucky he was admitted before it hit..."

"I know, the same has been happening here...the hospital was just cleared yesterday...they're barely letting anyone in anymore...and anybody showing symptoms is shot at the door. I don't even know what is ethical anymore..."

"Don't worry, Sam...things'll work out."

" Yea...anyway. You wanted to talk about Rick?"

"Right, of course business as usual...just like you ta-"

"Shane..." She warned, irritated.

"Right, Right...Will you be there for him? I mean, I have to hold the fort at the station, and Lori's got Carl...It won't be for too long...We're thinking about coming to the city for safety and-"

"He'll be taken care of here, Shane. Tell Lori not to worry, I'll make sure he's safe."

"Thanks, Sammy, I don't know what we would do if you weren't there."

"Well, lets just leave the conversation on the pros and cons of me leaving home for a time where people can prevent it, shall we?"

"Alright, but Sam?"

"Yes, Shane."

"Be careful, okay?"

She paused...the phone shaking in her hand. "You...You too, Shane..." She said, and then she hung up.

That was last time she heard from him.

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><p>"God damn it, John! Where's my medevac? I've been waiting at the hospital for an hour!"<p>

"Deputy...You're brother's town...They sent the helicopter...but..."

"But _what_, John. Stop dancing around the questions."

"It was overrun...nobody got out..." She dropped the phone with a clank.

"Deputy Walsh?" Silence "Sam?"

She ignored the calls sinking next to the swinging phone holding her head in her hands, her eyes glazing over and her head shaking.

"No..." she whispered, her voice shaking in disbelief.

"SAM? God damn it, Sam talk to me!" John yelled, but she ignored him, still in shock.

"Rick...Lori….Carl….." Then a moment of shock and maybe a slight freedom ran through her. "Shane….."

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><p><em>There's the prologue! I know it's a bit short by my standards, but it's just a small taste to get you into the story! Hope you like it and that you'll keep on reading! Reviews and Faves are love!<em>

_~Gwen_


	2. Lost and Found

7

_Hey all! Hope you liked the prologue chapter! I wrote it like two or three years ago and a little bit of this, but never did anything with it, so now I have! Hope you guys like it as much as I do. There isn't really much to say, aside from my disclaimer right now, so here goes:_

_**Disclaimer: I am not Kirkman, therefore I solely own Samantha and her parts of the Plot, anything else that would seem it is from the show, is.**_

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><p><em>Chapter One: Lost and Found<em>

**Sam's POV**

"Shit, Shit, _Double _Shit!"

I thundered through the twelfth precinct's hall, letting a few rounds loose behind me, and knowing only from a few tell-tale thuds that they even hid anything. I kept my breath steady as I ran, looking for a way to escape this crazy nightmare-turned-reality chasing me. The sheriff was down, and all of my men were falling as powerless as I was to stop all of the people- or what _used_ to be people- attacking the building as I tried to make my way through. I wouldn't be able to shoot them all down, nor could I properly shoot them now. The only way I could make myself was to not look and hope I wasn't wasting precious ammo. They were friends, family, men and women who were being released. Sure some of them were in lock-up, but the bars kept them at a safe distance from everyone else. They were trapped food that these things got to first.

Ever since that rash of fevers broke out across the state, or the nation, hell maybe even the world, people were dying only to come back as remnants of themselves from one of the stupid first shooter video game my ex used to obsess over. It was all too surreal at first, the hospital going into lockdown, the shootings of anyone who portrayed symptoms. But right now, with our proximity to the hospital, the station was getting the brunt of the attack, and it made everything all the more real. It started off as a normal shift when suddenly I was forced to watch my men were getting attacked and eaten by the very people whose lives they swore to serve and protect.

I pumped my legs forward, making a list of things I would need in my mind. They couldn't move that fast, so I had an advantage as I headed to my office. Upon reaching my desk, I was able to dispatch a few more of them and grab my walkies, car keys, and the keys to the weapons cage. The next step required me to use my baton to force my way through the door, which was a slight snag, since I had forgotten to think about the bottleneck effect my door would create. However, thanks to the knife at my side I was able to make quick work of them, but grateful that weren't very many following me. Moving to the cage a few minutes later, I grabbed one or two of each gun and 700 rounds of assorted ammo, though mostly for handguns where my preferences lie. I also grabbed few extra silencers, and already had the extra silent weapon of my hunting knife, more of which are in the car. The only thing left to do was to find my partner, amskray and make it back home to see if my family had managed to survive. Ever since I had gotten the call about Rick's town...my hometown...I had my car packed to leave at a minutes notice. Forcing myself to focus, I moved to the garage where said vehicle was. Little did I know what I was to find.

John was lying on the floor, the dead banging on the door leading outside. There were a few more coming behind me, as I threw it shut, dropping to where he was. He was pretty bad, his neck was torn, and he had bites along his arms. He must have come in side through the door and that was why so many were after him. I pulled him into my lap, and ripping the bottom of his shirt to make a wrap for his neck. There was no way he was going to survive, but I needed to give him his best shot. Just as I held the fabric up to wrap it, he lifted an arm up, pausing my movement.

"No...You'll need an out." He rasped, pointing to the doors and how weak they were getting under the unrelenting forces. "I'll c...over you."

"Don't be an idiot." I snapped, wrapping his arm as he gasped in my arms. "You're getting out of here with me, and as acting Sheriff right now, that's an order."

I tied the shirt tight, careful that it wasn't choking him at the same time and pulled him up. The door crashed open with the dead pouring around us. I took a few shots, and tried to drag John with me, his body getting more and more limp with each passing step. He shot behind me as I shot in front, but when we got to my car, he stumbled, making us fall against the side of it. He was fading fast and he wasn't letting me help him. I grit my teeth as I forced him up into a sitting position next to me, keeping watch as they moved towards us among the other cars.

"John, don't do this." I warned, noticing the light fading from his eyes, "We are going to get out of here together...I owe you that much."

He laughed humorless, his breaths growing shallow as he weakly clasped my shoulder, "Get out of here, Rookie. You owe _yourself_ that much. Find your family. _Survive._" I opened my mouth to protest, but he shook his head, letting out a few barking coughs, "You're running out of time, don't let your stubbornness get you killed." He gave me a small small as I searched his body for some way to save him. "_Go." _

I satt there powerlessly as his hand slipped off of my shoulder and he let out one last breath. I shook him slightly, trying to get him to stay away, but his eyes went blank and he stopped fighting. Stopped doing everything altogether. I ran a hand through my hair, not sure what to do with him, but not having the luxury of time. They were moving closer to me, their moans and groans faint against the blood pounding in my ears. After a few more seconds I didn't have, I steeled myself and did what needed to be done. Getting into my car, I pulled forward, crashing the garage door door on a bunch of the bastards as they swarmed around my partner's body and tore into his still warm flesh. I drove away, fighting the urge to go back and kill them all, and left my home in search of a place I thought I'd never return to.

~*~*~A Month and a Half Later~*~*~

The fat from my most recent hunting trip sizzled on the grate I'd made from broken parts of my Coleman stove, half of Daniel's camping supplies having been lost or scrapped for important bits with the need to travel as lightly as possible. My Camping backpack wasn't exactly light, but with when I switch campsites after lunch, I'm leaving the useless stuff behind. I had about a week's worth of MRE's left and the rabbit would last me a couple of days. The main issue right now was water, and I ran out of filters for my water bottle, and there was a limited supply of purification tablets to begin with. The bulkiest part of my bag was all the weapons I had and even then, they were cut in half due to a run in with a small group about a month ago. It was ended amicably enough given that I threatened their leader with a bullet to the head and a knife to the gonads simultaneously.

The past month had been quiet, but bearable. I was doing what I want when and where I wanted to and no one told me what to do about it. I was camping and enjoying the outdoors by myself for the first time in years, and there was no stench of the city around me. Everything was clear and I could practice my survival whenever I wanted. Not that the hypothetical and mechanical motions could ever replace the hands on, application of practical use, but it would do for now. There was a moving base camp that I could leave in the morning to go for a run and wash myself and laundry at the stream. Overall, this whole fiasco was a much needed wake up call to unplug from the world and enjoy nature around us. Though I highly doubtful that anyone thought that outside of my twisted mind.

There was a rustling from behind me, making me reach for my shotgun as I became more aware of my surrounding again. It was a louder weapon and not really necessary since this area had been clear, and there weren't any of the undead nearby to hear it. The only reason I had the thing was the movement was working opposite the afternoon breeze and it sounded bigger than the occasional squirrel or rabbit that would wander over here. Even still, maybe it was a deer and I'd be able to cure meat for weeks. It quieted suddenly, a faint intake of breath barely heard. I squared my shoulder, and spun around, pointing the gun in front of me only to be met by the sight of a crossbow being aimed towards my forehead. I stood stock still, not wanting to give in, or allow an opening to be shot.

The man in question was thin, all lean muscles under the tattered, sleeveless t-shirt He had dark brown hair that was shaggy, but trimmed so that it fell close to his head, with these calculatingly piercing blue eyes. Everything about him screamed hunter, redneck, a natural. He had clearly been doing thing a lot longer than when society crashed. He was taking me in at the same time, neither of us saying a word as we aimed our weapons at each other. Finally, he spoke, his deep voice the first I'd heard in weeks.

"You gonna lower yer weapon?" It came out a lot more like a demand, making me bristle, shifting my gun towards his crossbow.

"I'll lower mine, if you lower yours."

My voice was a lot deeper than I remembered it being, my throat not accustomed to being used outside of breathing and eating lately, but I didn't let that show. There was no telling what he thought was going on with my small campsite around the tiny fire with my slowly burning rabbit popping next to me. If this stand-off made me waste away a week's hunt, I'd be pissed. I watched as he shifted his gaze between the weapons and me, as if considering what to do. After a little bit, he nodded, and we lowered our weapons in a synchronized, drop of the forearms. We still stood a few feet from each other, sizing up whatever we were. I took in the crossbow and, upon noticing the fletchings on his bolts, let out a small, humorless laugh.

I held an arm up towards the weapon, explaining the sentiment to him when he tilted his head in an agitated show of confusion. "You've been the one hitting my squirrels. Got a 'coon from me once or twice too."

"Ain't mah fault you're too slow to catch 'em." He snapped, looking to the grill behind me. "You're terrible at cookin' too. That rabbit you've got there is burnin'."

I set my jaw, his voice and accent getting on my nerves, "I can cook, just _fine_, thank you." I backed up to be next to the cooking meat with a scowl. "_You_ just have bad timing and I would rather eat some burnt rodent than have a _bolt_ through the forehead. Last I checked, you don't really _walk away_ from those."

He let out a short humph while I pulled the rabbit onto my mess kit with my multi tool. I looked torward him and swore softly, cursing my own moral code and grabbing the bowl from the kit as well. As I picked at some of the charred bits, I held it out toward him with half of the semi-burned meat. He eyed it for a few seconds, looking at me like I was crazy. Which, I may have been, this man just tried to kill me and now I'm sharing what sparse food I had. Finally, after watching me take a bite from what I'd offered, he accepted it. As if I would waste good poison on some redneck hunter anyway.

"You know, you're lucky I don't have the immunity to or the possession of Iocane Powder." I mumbled, taking another bite of the succulent meat. "You'd have definitely lost the battle of wits."

"What the _hell_ are you yammering about?" I snorted, looking at the poised food from his frozen stance as he looked at me strangely.

"Nothing...sorry, I haven't really talked to anyone the past month, and I forget we all have different literary backgrounds."

He gave me a look, but didn't say anything as we finished the rabbit and I killed the fire. The thick humidity and Georgian heat wasn't very welcoming, so the added heat needed to go. Or at least that's what I told myself as I went through my pack afterwards as well, avoiding the gaze of the hunter. Really, it was just that my statement was more accurate than I cared to admit. I'd spent the last month isolated from society and wasn't sure what to do about it. He clearly wasn't much of a talker either, which didn't force me to assimilate back into anything. After finally having enough of his constant observation of my movements, I cleared my throat, pointing towards the woods with a befuddled expression.

"So uh….you guy yourself, or do you have a group waiting for you to bring back dinner or something?" I hedged, trying to hint that he was overstaying his welcome, what little there was of it.

"Got a group." He shrugged. "Been trackin' a deer I injured a few miles back. Saw your fire and figured you mighta seen it."

I looked around the woods, thinking back to if there were other disturbances to my silent solitude today. "Sorry, can't say that I have." I hoisted my now lighter pack onto my shoulders, scattering the discarded materials around with my foot. "But thanks for providing the first company I've had in weeks. If you'll excuse me, I have some miles to cover and a camp to make before it gets too dark. I've stayed too close to the city for too long."

"You seriously been living out here all by yourself, girl?"

The question made me stop, my back having been turned to him for the first time since he'd showed up. Whipping around, I narrowed my eyes at him. "I'm twenty three years old, not some little high school _girl_." He was standing now, as he started to head back towards the woods where he came from. "And if you _must _know, I've been by myself since the beginning of this hellish outbreak."

"Why don't you help me hunt some venison and you can have a bit?" He pointed to the scattered remnants of my fire. "Least I could do after you shared your meal."

"You wanted to shoot me not _five minutes_ ago, and now you want me to trust you to work together on a _hunt_?"

"Don't know if I can trust you if I leave you out here. Could just be waiting fo' me to lead you right to all of 'em back at camp to try and take us over." I raised an eyebrow at him skeptically making him grow angry. "Are ye comin' or not!"

I shrugged, adjusting the bag to properly rest on the hip straps and off of my bag. "Don't know how much use I'll be with this on my back, but sure….haven't got anywhere better to go."

He nodded slowly, turning abruptly and picking up the crossbow and making his way around the path he'd shown up from, not even paying attention to whether or not I followed. With a shake of my head, I followed him down the road, moving as slowly and quietly as I could with the bag, my knife in one hand and my pistol with a silencer in the holster on my side. We walked quietly for a long time, his weapon poised wherever he walked, just as my stance was ready with the knife. It wasn't until it got dark that I spoke the woods growing harder to navigate.

I looked to see if he was showing any signs of stopping and shook my head. He would probably keep walking all night and into the morning if he could. His focus was steady and locked onto the signs of the animal around him. A bit of blood on the shrubs, some hoof prints in the ground and the nature of the impressions. I would probably stop and he wouldn't even notice. I took off my bag silently when we reached a clearing big enough for my tent and started to look for firewood, tightening the ponytail that I pulled my hair into earlier today. My luck wasn't as good as I thought though, since he had stopped and was looking back at me impatiently. Looking side to side, I snuck up to him so that I could make up an excuse for my escape attempt.

"Look, I hate to be a burden, I _really _do…" I said, my voice low when I caught up to him. "But I think we're gonna want to set up camp for the night. We won't be any good if we find the thing after straining our eyes all night looking for it."

"Tracks are pretty good...should catch up to it tomorrow anyway." He muttered, setting off to get wood for a small fire while I set up my tent.

We worked in silence for a while, the fire low so that we could see what we were doing, but be able to alert anyone or _thing_ to where we were. I set up the inside of the tent to have my sleeping bag as well as a blanket, folding up a sweater for my own pillow and placing the small one I had with the blanket. I got out, and sat across from him at the fire. Neither of us spoke still, our legs cross and rests resting on our knees. The dying embers popped and snapped until there was nearly nothing left and still nothing was said. Finally, I cleared my throat, pushing myself up.

"There's a pillow and a blanket that you can use, if you decide you want some sleep." I pointed to my watch, "This goes off in a couple of hours and I'll take the next watch."

I walked towards the tent, pausing when I heard him call out a soft, "Wait."

I turned, raising an eyebrow at him, for what felt like the hundredth time today, "Yeah?"

"What should I call you?" His wording was strange, but there was a genuine curiosity in his voice.

"You mean other than 'girl'?" I scoffed, "It's Samantha, but most people call me Sam...what about you?" He sat there for a moment not replying so I sighed, and turned towards the tent, "Good talk…"

I had just finished closing the mesh window of the tent when I heard a soft murmer from coming outside.

"Daryl…." It said, "My name is Daryl."

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><p><em>Not one of my best chapters, but I like it! Hope you liked the introduction to Sam and a small look into her background. Since it's in her perspective we won't be seeing a lot, she has a lot going on though, we just have to find the right way to get her to show it! Anyway, hope you liked it, and please review or fave, or whatever to show me you liked it! <em>

_~Gwen_


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